Job market expected to stay strong through '98

Even as stock markets slump and corporate profits shrink, the job market should remain strong through the end of 1998, according to a survey being released Monday.

In its quarterly survey of 16,000 U.S. businesses, Manpower Inc. found that 29 percent of the companies plan to add workers in the fourth quarter of this year.Only 7 percent of the business surveyed plan to cut jobs, while 60 percent anticipate no change. The remaining 4 percent weren't sure, the survey said.

Manpower, the nation's largest temporary staffing firm, said hiring should remain strong in every region of the country except the Northeast, where just 24 percent of companies surveyed plan to hire new workers. The strongest growth should come in the South, where 31 percent of companies expect to add workers, followed by the Midwest and West at 30 percent each.

The job outlook is bright in every sector but the durable goods manufacturing area.